Characters: Lyndri Ambassador, Mr. Zaine
- A Lyndri Ambassador takes a meeting with a Mr.Zaine
- The Ambassador is never named.
- Mr. Zaine gives the appearance of being well off, but in a generic sort of way
- He seems to be 'middle class' trying to look 'elite'
- She tries to dismiss him (despite some rather large power plays getting him there) but he isn't dissuaded.
- The Terrans requested she take the meeting as a favor
- All of her other meetings were canceled abruptly.
- He asks, "Tell me, Ambassador, are your people content with their place in the galaxy?"
- This question is definitely 'leading the witness'; he knows she isn't specifically, and her people are not, in general.
- He makes it clear that he knows about the Lyndri 'population problem'.
- This is not considered "common knowledge", even though everyone knows there's issues with a race where no one has ever seen a male, and they are requently turned into sex slaves.
- She gets upset that he's so casual with this knowledge, and demands to know where he got it.
- He points out that it's not hard to piece together, and he's right.
- My intention is for this to be a "worst kept secret".
- It's not common knowledge why the Lyndri have a problem, just that they do.
- She threatens him, but he's holding all the cards.
- He hands her a Lyndri-made artifact, with a recording from before an ancient battle.
- The artifact is significant, since the Lyndri buy all their tech, and don't produce any of it.
- Hence, their tech is all a hodge-podge, and designed for humans at best, NorAellians at worst.
- I would love a visual of one of their cities, with things clearly being pieced together from tech bought from the other factions.
- The recording on it (doctored by Zaine) is evidence of a war between NorAellians and Lyndri.
- Convinced, she wants to know how much he and the people he represents will cost her people.
- Zaine says absolutely free. All they ask is patience and understanding once the truth comes out.
- This is a lie, he wants them to go to war.
Characters: Captain Owen Rees, Commander Thomas O'Farrell, Lieutenant Commander Samantha Liakos (No Lines), Lieutenant Commander Hugh Daniels, Lt. JG Miranda Collins, Lieutenant Lise Kaden (no lines), Sergeant Major Camila Sonya (no lines)
- Captain is talking with his XO, telling him shit is about to hit the fan.
- We're getting reports of the Lyndri "going nuts" and demanding reparations for the NorAellians.
- This is actually the start of the Lyndri/NorAellian war.
- The Captain informs his XO that there is a lot more going on than that.
- The Lyndri have a fleet of working dreadnaughts. They're barely working, but they still shoot.
- They took out a NorAellian merchant fleet.
- The League was ordered to stay clear, this is a matter between the NorAellians and the Lyndri.
- Captain holds a staff briefing about their latest mission.
- The Tel'Erani system detected three large masses inbound.
- Clearly came from a Terran Colony.
- Early reports look like two battlecruisers, and a light cruiser.
- The colony was deemed important since it's become a common transit point for merchants crossing the border.
- An attempted Terran invasion about fifty years ago made it clear that there’s a subspace corridor between Tel'Erani and Fulu. Command setup a full early warning system and picket line… looks like over the decades the pickett's been reduced to a single frigate, which is currently not even stationed there.
- The picket frigate was sabotaged, and had to go for repair.
- Captain thinks this is an exploratory mission, to test readiness, but not fight.
- Miranda (new Ops) points out that's not the case; the ships are flying too weirdly
- “The smaller mass, the ‘light cruiser’ as the computers identified it, that, uh, isn’t a light cruiser. It’s an interdictor.” She sent her terminal to the briefing room main display. “See how it’s half a light second behind the others? And this formation; it’s pretty weird. The lead ships are far too close to each other; any unexpected turbulence and they’d risk a collision.”
- XO shuts her down with a "doesn't seem likely, but I like your enthusiasm."
- Mir counters with a, "no, you're wrong, look."
- “First, I think their posture changing so quickly is because they’ve been planning for this. The build up along the Lyndri and NorAellian borders is probably just for show. You said that there’s a natural subspace corridor between Fulu and Tel'Erani. In that case, they should be able to pull at least thirty percent more speed if those front two are battlecruisers, right? I mean, maybe they aren’t. But if they are, then this is definitely ‘weird’, and not just ‘unusual’. Oh the other hand, if I wanted to hit Tel'Erani hard, I’d use two battlecruisers as a wedge and let my interdictor fall down the corridor. As long as the interdictor stayed a half light second behind, and the battlecruisers ran their reactors full out, they would be able to keep normal battlecruiser speed, even with the interdictor.”
- Captain seems to agree with her. XO comes around, too.
- Captain says they're going to assume Mir is right.
- They order evacuations, knowing full well they can't make a dent in things.
Characters: Lizbeth Locke, Day (her fixer)
- Liz is awoken by an incoming call, and realizes she is in someone else's bed.
- The call is from Day, her 'assistant'. (He's kinda like an agent.)
- Liz is being petulant and groggy
- Day gets it across that it's important and time critical
- Liz gathers up her shit, wishing she remembered the night before, or the name of the woman who was telling her to come back to bed.
- Liz leaves telling the woman she'll call her, but the woman calls after ther that she doesn't have her number.
Characters: Fleet Admiral Alastair McKenzie, Captain Nicholas Hayes
- McKenzie catches Hayes up on the situation with Rekonin.
- Hayes assumes McKenzie wants him to take a team and handle the situation.
- McKenzie has already sent Liz, Hayes gets pissed.
- There is some history between Hayes and Liz; Liz respects the shit out of Hayes, and he hates her guts. (Both things that are out of character for either of them.)
- McKenzie doesn't know what happened, and is pretty sure he'd better not ask.
- McKenzie instead tells him about Archigos, and pleads with Hayes to go help his son and daughter.
- Hayes points out that what McKenzie wants probably can't happen.
- However, if Liz gets her shit done, the Rekonin could save the Archigos... maybe.
Characters: Jonathan Simon, Mr. Zaine, Abby, Sylvia (no lines), Lizbeth Locke (mention)
- Simon wakes to the sound of someone walking down the hallway leading to his cell.
- The person comes all the way into his room, something that they clearly shouldn't do.
- Mr. Zaine has Simon's cane, and asks if he would like his freedom.
- Simon questions Zaine a little, but accepts
- Simon dramtically removes himself from his restraints.
- Simon stands, takes his cane, and listend as guards respond.
- He asks Zaine if his employers are trying to start a new order, of some kind.
- Zaine responds with, "We just want to watch worlds burn."
- Simon summons Abby and kills the guards that responded to the breakout.
- As they are leaving Simon exposits that Liz is his sister, and as immortal as he is.
- Sylvia appears in the doorway as they're leaving.
- She is not actually visible to anyone but Simon at this moment.
Characters: Lt. JG Miranda Colins, Captain Rees, Ensign Louis Capelle, Commander O'Farrell, First Lieutenant Glyse McKenzie, Warrent Officer (Terran Undercover Agent)
- Mir is running ops as they prepare for the Terran arrival in Tel'Erani.
- Mir has tapped into the Tel'Erani sensors, and is using them to confirm her suspicions.
- Rees has been giving her full support.
- Getting sensor readings out of a natural subspace corridor is dififcult at best. Mir has had to slave the ground computer to the Archigos' to make it make sense.
- Louis Capelle helped her get it all worked out.
- Mir was still working to prove her theory when Glyse and O'Farrell walk in, arguing.
- The argument is not important.
- A Warrent Officer (evil) comes in, and hands the captain a report.
- The Captain tries to hand the report back so he can deal with the argument behind him.
- The officer get insistant, and everyone stops, knowing that something weird is going down.
- No one suspects the Warrent Officer of being a traitor, though, which is why the Captain takes the pad.
- The Pad is rigged, Captain dies, XO is shot, and Glyse straight up murders the guy with her bare hands.
- This is off camera, so while it gives a hint at what she can do, we don't telegraph it.
- Glyse tells Mir she's in charge, and slowly that dawns on her what that means.
- She's a little slow getting medical and security moving.
- Quickly, though, everything's handled, and she stares at the center chair, realizing it's hers, now.
Characters: Captain Sean Krimm, Selene (Sooni), Unnamed Terran Officer
- Sean is getting his book on in his private meditation room, next to the CIC.
- We get a little diatribe about how women and sex are handled by the Terrans
- An officer comes in with a report, loathing how 'western' the room is.
- The officer is of noble Chinese birth, and superior to Sean, but Sean has the higer rank.
- Sean makes the man humiliate himself, just because he doesn't like those kinds of pointless traditions.
- Sean tells the officer to read the report to him
- The report is marked "Captain's Eyes Only", and is an intelligence report
- Sean knows the officer read it, and is just making him sweat more.
- After a few moments, Sean gives him a way to save face, suggesting that maybe he glanced at the title, in an effort to be able to ensure it was worth bothering the captain over?
- It seems there's an Archigos class waiting for them.
- Sean briefly flirts with the idea of delaying because of the news, but decides to see how the League captain plays things.
- Intelligence wants to know how they were even detected.
- Sean dismisses this, coming to the correct conclusion that since this corridor was used once before, the League heave been watching it ever since.
- The officer attempts to leave, saying he will start battle drills
- Sean stops him, asking what for?
- The officer is confused and tries to explain.
- Sean counters with, "It's only one tiny ship. Do you dishonor you fellows by suggesting they're not prepared?"
- Sean orders the officer not to tell anyone about what's coming.
- Selene things it was cruel of Sean to mess with the officer like he did.
- Sean reveals that she is under someone else's employ and not a cocubine.
- Selene teases him, and Sean is having none of it.
- He is strickly a business before pleasure kind of guy.
- Selene is having none of this, and pinned him to the sofa, getting off on him.
- His mind always working, he takes this show of strength for what it is; another hint at who or what Selene actually is, and who or what she works for.
- Sean lets slip he's going to fail the invasion.
- Selene objects, saying that's not what they asked him to do.
- Sean uses the confusion to throw her to the floor, and she lets him.
- He explains that he plans to use it to make himself more powerful, removing some personal obsticles.
- Deciding he is in the mood after all, he and Selene fuck.